This week’s quote comes from Wes Jackson, founder of the Land Institute, speaking on his organization’s attempts to develop a perennial crop in the hopes of increasing yields and eliminating soil erosion and ecosystem degradation.

“As the ice retreated some 10,000 years ago in the eastern Mediterranean, agriculture began—first with wheat, an annual. Later, rice, another annual, was domesticated in the Orient, and still later, corn, an annual, in Mexico. These three grains are the world’s top three crops. Today, some 70 percent of our calories come from these and other grains grown on about 70 percent of our acreage, both domestically and globally. Reflecting on nature’s perennial polyculture of the American prairie, I wondered whether we could, through breeding, develop an agriculture based on perennial grains and, through the application of ecological knowledge, grow them in mixtures. Could such an arrangement grant us the efficiencies inherent within the natural integrities of a prairie ecosystem? In other words, could those processes, so prevalent in nature’s ecosystems, be brought to the farm? If so, we might be able to solve the 10,000-year-old problem…

Construction and FDI manufacturing sectors performed remarkably well in May.

Nikkei’s Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) rose slightly to 52.7 in May from 52.3 in April, fueled by the growth of new orders, though at a slower pace than seen in the last month. Meanwhile, the Industrial Production Index grew at 7.5% YoY in May, much lower than the growth of 9.2% YoY during the same period last year due to declines in the mining and quarrying sectors1.

Consumer Price Index (CPI) continued to increase 0.54% MoM in May and the headline inflation settled at 2.28% YoY2. Much of the increase was attributed to the pickup of 2.39% MoM in transportation and 0.88% MoM in housing and construction material prices. On the consumption front, real retail sales growth stood at 7.8% YoY in May, lower than the growth of 8.2% YoY in the same period last year partly due to negative effects of the mass fish deaths in Central Vietnam on the accommodation & catering services and travel service sectors2.

Trade balance in May posted an estimated deficit of USD 400 million, narrowing…

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